Title Defense at the FM Championship
Defeated Ko Jin-young in a Playoff Last Year
Could Become the First Multi-Winner on the LPGA Tour This Season
Yoo Hyeran is aiming for her first back-to-back victory.
From August 28 (local time), she will compete for the championship at the FM Championship on the LPGA Tour, held over four days at TPC Boston (par 72, 6,533 yards) in Norton, Massachusetts, USA. The total prize money for the event is 4.1 million dollars.
Yoo Hyeran challenges for a second consecutive win at the FM Championship. Photo by AP and Yonhap News
Yoo Hyeran joined the LPGA Tour in 2023 and became the inaugural champion of the FM Championship, which was newly established last year. At that time, she shot an impressive 8-under-par on the final day, tying with Ko Jin-young at 15-under-par 273, and clinched the victory with a par on the first playoff hole. After securing her first LPGA Tour win at the Arkansas Championship in October 2023, she claimed her second trophy at the FM Championship just 11 months later, and then earned her third career win at the Black Desert Championship in May this year.
Currently ranked 10th in the world, Yoo Hyeran is 15th in CME points this season (1,094 points), 23rd on the money list (1,088,324 dollars), and 15th in scoring average (70.70 strokes). Since her win at the Black Desert Championship, her best result has been a tie for 7th at the Portland Classic in mid-August, with no other notable finishes. However, her greens in regulation rate is outstanding at 76.88% (1st place), though her average putts per round is somewhat disappointing at 30.70 (140th place).
If Yoo Hyeran successfully defends her title at this tournament, she could become the first multiple winner on the LPGA Tour for the 2025 season. So far this season, there have been 23 different winners in 22 tournaments on the LPGA Tour, including the Dow Championship, a team event won by Lim Jinhui and Lee Somin. Attention is focused on whether Yoo Hyeran can make this tournament a turning point in her season.
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